Letter to the Editor: Follow our forefathers

By CHARLES M. JONESHelper

Editor:

Over the last few years I've witnessed the closing of many road and trails to beautiful places in our area by the BLM motivated by SUWA and the Sierra Club. I've seen no designated ATV trails in the San Rafael. The rest is gravel, paved roads or highways, which is illegal to drive ATV's on.

Now there going to do the same here in Carbon County as they did with the San Rafael. From what I understand they are considering closing 75,000 acres around the Cleveland Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry. That will reach all the way to the mounds area in Wellington. They are trying to close all the trails in Carbon County with all these fancy names like, RMP and DRMP etc. since congress stayed the wilderness study program.

I am ashamed of what we've become. Our fathers and forefathers would not have tolerated this for a minute. Remember the coal mine strikes of the past, where is your back bone? Are you going to bury your head in the sand and let this happen? I think it is time that we spoke out against it and to the BLM or anyone else threatening our right to use our lands. There is more of us than there is of them. This is our county and state, and this is our public land, we need to be in control of it. Their way is to have people from all over the country, who has never even been here control our lands.

This will hurt our coal industry, farming, mineral, water oil and recreational industry. This will be devastating to our economy, our heritage and our way of life. Please let the BLM know how you feel about them taking our lands from us. I definitely feel that we need to know what candidates are behind us.

We need to rally in force like our ancestors did before us. I'm proud of my heritage and this country, I'm willing to fight for it and against those who would destroy it or pollute it or take my rights away.